A News Blog

Crime and courts in West Alabama

Services for the Northport police officer killed in a crash last week have been announced. Visitation for Officer Jason Guin will be at Sunset Funeral Home at 5 p.m. Tuesday. The funeral service will be at Sunset Funeral Home Wednesday at 11 a.m. Burial will follow at Mt. Hebron Baptist Church. Guin, 37, suffered internal injuries during the crash on U.S. Highway 43 North near Tierce Patton Road early Thursday morning. He was off-duty at the time. Guin died early… Read More »

Tuscaloosa Police are searching for a man who broke into a pharmacy and stole medication last week. The man forced his way into Dunkin’s Pharmacy, 7700 Highway 69 South, at 3:27 a.m. on Dec. 5, said TPD spokesman Sgt. Brent Blankley. Once inside, he took an undisclosed amount of prescription medicine. TPD released surveillance photos of the man Monday morning. Anyone who can identify the burglar is asked to call Tuscaloosa County CrimeStoppers at 205-752-STOP (7867) or text “Tusc” and… Read More »

Misdemeanor charges against the driver in a fatal wreck were upgraded to felonies Friday. Rusty Allen, 32, was charged with murder after the Nov. 16 wreck that left Scott Naylor dead. Allen was also charged with assault because of injuries sustained by other passengers who were in the truck with Naylor. One woman suffered from a broken pelvis and other broken bones. Naylor’s wife received spinal fractures, cuts and bruises. “The upgrades are a result of the severity of the… Read More »

A homeowner called 911 at 3 a.m. Friday after a man entered his home and threatened him with a metal pipe, according to the Tuscaloosa County Sheriff’s Office. The man told deputies that Howard Joseph Rodgers, 30, entered his house in the 19000 block of Vic Green Road and threatened him. Deputies arrived and arrested Rodgers, who knows the man he is accused of threatening, said Sheriff’s Office spokesman Sgt. Andy Norris. Rodgers was being held at the Tuscaloosa County… Read More »

A Northport police officer died early Friday morning from injuries sustained in a car crash. Jimmy Jason Guin, 37, died at UAB Hospital at 2:34 a.m. Friday, according to a hospital spokeswoman. Guin was driving his Ford Explorer that was involved in a two-vehicle crash on U.S. Highway 43 North near Tierce Patton Road at 6:39 a.m. Thursday. The driver of the Nissan Maxima was not injured. He was thrown from the vehicle and suffered internal injuries. Alabama State Troopers… Read More »

Tuscaloosa County Sheriff’s deputies made four arrests and recovered property stolen in two burglaries after recognizing the suspect’s vehicle Thursday. The deputies saw the Nissan Pathfinder near Kauloosa Avenue and Alabama Highway 69 South on Thursday afternoon, said Sheriff’s Office spokesman Sgt. Andy Norris. It matched the description of a Pathfinder seen near an abandoned house on Bradley Road that was burglarized Wednesday. Deputies questioned the occupants and charged them with two counts of third-degree burglary. All of the items… Read More »

Tuscaloosa Police are searching for a burglary suspect who they say stole a television and a bed comforter. Ladarius Antwan Matthews, 23, is wanted for one count of third-degree burlary. He is suspected of breaking into a home in the 700 block of Dogwood Lane at 8:50 p.m. on Nov. 14, said Tuscaloosa Police spokesman Sgt. Brent Blankley. A 32-inch flat-screen television and a queen-sized comforter were stolen in the burglary. Anyone who can help police locate Matthews is asked… Read More »

A Northport police officer is in critical condition at UAB Hospital after an early morning car crash. Jimmy Jason Guin, 37, was seriously injured in a two-vehicle crash on U.S. 43 North near Tierce Patton Road at 6:39 a.m. Guin was off-duty and driving a Ford Explorer. A woman driving a Nissan Maxima was not injured. Alabama State Troopers are investigating the cause of the crash. “On behalf of the city of Northport and the Northport Police Department, our thoughts… Read More »

A Tuscaloosa County teenager who escaped from the Mount Meigs juvenile detention center last month is facing eight new criminal charges. Brandon Evans, 16, is charged with first-degree assault, first-degree escape, first-degree conspiracy to escape, first-degree theft and two counts of second-degree theft — all felonies. He faces two misdemeanor charges of third-degree assault. Evans is accused of escaping from the detention center on Nov. 17. Law enforcement in Tuscaloosa County issued warnings to the public to look out for… Read More »

Investigators have charged a man accused of raping his ex-girlfriend at her home early Monday. Danny Prewitt Williams Jr., 30, was charged Tuesday with first-degree rape and first-degree sodomy. He was being held at the Tuscaloosa County Jail Wednesday morning with bail set at $120,000. The victim told police that Williams called her at 1 a.m. Monday and said he wanted to see her, said Tuscaloosa County Metro Homicide Unit commander Capt. Loyd Baker. She told him no and ended… Read More »